We have had several fun events lately and I got to try out some new recipes. :) I don't like to bake unless there's a lot of people to share with, or we will eat them all! Most of them I found through my new favorite website pinterest. These will cover the three basic food groups of dessert: cookies, cake, and cupcakes.
E helped me make the cookies. (while playing with magnets :)
Recipe: Chocolate & Peanut Butter Chip Pretzel Cookies
Makes 24 cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. of salt
- 1/4 tsp. of baking soda
- 1/2 cup of butter at room temperature
- 1/2 cup of tightly packed light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup of granulated sugar
- 1 egg (beaten)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup peanut butter chips
- 1/2 cup broken up pretzel pieces
- Preztel Salt or Sea Salt
Directions:
- In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a larger bowl, beat the butter and sugars together on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). On low speed, slowly add the beaten egg and vanilla extract. Beat to combine, scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add the flour mixture and beat just until there are no more streaks of flour. Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and preztels. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out well rounded tablespoonfuls of the dough and sprinkle with pretzel salt. Leave about 2 inches between each ball. Bake for 10 minutes. If you prefer crispier cookies increase the baking time by 1-2 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing.
de.licious.
Then I made the Pioneer Woman's tres leches for B's belated birthday celebration. Of course it was amazing. Ingredients
- 1 cup All-purpose Flour
- 1-1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 5 whole Eggs
- 1 cup Sugar, Divided
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 1/3 cup Milk
- 1 can Evaporated Milk
- 1 can Sweetened, Condensed Milk
- 1/4 cup Heavy Cream
- _____
- FOR THE ICING:
- 1 pint Heavy Cream, For Whipping
- 3 Tablespoons Sugar
Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan liberally until coated.
Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Separate eggs.
Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar on high speed until yolks are pale yellow. Stir in milk and vanilla. Pour egg yolk mixture over the flour mixture and stir very gently until combined.
Beat egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. With the mixer on, pour in remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff but not dry.
Fold egg white mixture into the batter very gently until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and spread to even out the surface.
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn cake out onto a rimmed platter and allow to cool.
Combine condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream in a small pitcher. When cake is cool, pierce the surface with a fork several times. Slowly drizzle all but about 1 cup of the milk mixture—try to get as much around the edges of the cake as you can.
Allow the cake to absorb the milk mixture for 30 minutes. To ice the cake, whip 1 pint heavy cream with 3 tablespoons of sugar until thick and spreadable.
Spread over the surface of the cake. Decorate cake with whole or chopped maraschino cherries. Cut into squares and serve.
and lastly, for a friend's baby shower, I used the PW's sheet cake recipe to make some delicious cupcakes! (I honestly had never made cupcakes from scratch before, but I think they turned out pretty good!
Ingredients
- FOR THE CAKE:
- 2 cups Flour
- 2 cups Sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
- 2 sticks Butter
- 1 cup Boiling Water
- 1/2 cup Buttermilk
- 2 whole Beaten Eggs
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- _____
- FOR FROSTING:
- 1/2 cup Finely Chopped Pecans
- 1-3/4 stick Butter
- 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
- 6 Tablespoons Milk
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 1 pound (minus 1/2 Cup) Powdered Sugar
Preparation Instructions
Note: I use an 18x13 sheet cake pan.
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.
In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.
Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.
In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.
While cake is baking, make the icing. Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.
Cut into squares, eat, and totally wig out over the fact that you’ve just made the best chocolate sheet cake. Ever.
Next time I think I would double the cocoa in the cupcake, and double dip them in icing. (the icing is pretty liquid, so I just turned the cupcakes upside down and dipped them in it. Then you could let it harden a little and dip them again.)
Enjoy!
nothing will stop us from seeing that whale!
